I work in the dental field, and have for over 20 years. I know a thing or two about dentistry and how
important regular dental check-ups are to your oral health and overall health,
for that matter. Every day, I talk to
patients about personal oral hygiene, maintenance appointments and taking care
of problems before they become extensive (translate: expensive). You would think that somebody with my
background would never, ever miss a check-up or wait too long to get a problem
addressed. You probably think that like
my American Express, I never leave home without my floss. You could not be more wrong.
No Time For Dentistry
My most often used excuse for missing a dental check-up is
that I am too busy to take the time to see my dentist. If I can fall prey to this excuse, then so
can anybody. We all lead very busy
lives. I tell myself that I cannot take
the time to keep an appointment. I have
work and on top of that, I have my own small business. In addition, I have two children, soccer,
scouts and school functions. I tell
myself that I simply cannot afford to take the time to see my dentist. I once went almost 20 months in between
dental visits, which resulted in the
need for additional dental visits.
Common sense and basic dental knowledge tells me that one hour every six
months is completely do-able. Life’s
pace, and the excuses I make to myself create a different reality. I understand it, I really do. The truth is, giving up an hour now will most
definitely save you from more hours in the future.
Good Dental Hygiene Is Not Enough
My second excuse for missing a dental appointment is that I
take good care of my teeth. I brush
well, keep my gums healthy and I do floss.
I will admit, I do not floss as often as I should and every once in a
while the results of that shortcoming will show on my x-rays. I can afford to skip a dental cleaning
because I keep my teeth very clean.
Nope. There is this hard stuff
called calculus that build up on your teeth even if you keep them very
clean. Maybe there is a small area that
you miss regularly, or cannot reach well enough. There it will grow, the hardened plaque that
brushing alone cannot remove. It will
damage your teeth, promote bacterial growth and ultimately advance into either
tooth decay, gum disease or both. This
hardened calculus can only be removed by a professional, and skipping dental
cleaning appointments allows the destructive stuff to do it’s dirty work.
That Filling I Had When I Was 18 Is Just Fine
If you have had any dental work done in the past, it’s
important to have it checked for stability on a regular basis. Over time, most dental restorations will get
old. Some will need to be replaced. If you have had a filling or a crown, a root
canal or a bridge in the past, chances are it can break down over time. I like to tell myself that the filling I had
in my molar when I was 18 is indestructible.
It has been fixed and is no longer a problem. The truth is, this filling needs to be checked
on a regular basis to make sure that it holds it’s integrity and does not
become damaged. During my dental
avoidance period of 20 months, an edge on that filling began to pull away,
leaving a tiny crevice just large enough for bacteria to grow. Tooth decay set in around the filling. When I went back to the dentist after my long
absence, the filling had to be removed and replaced. I am not saying that my over 20 year old
filling would not have failed if I had kept my appointments every 6 months, but
I am saying that the problem would have been caught sooner and the repair made
before tooth decay set in, had I not avoided the dentist.
I Have a Love/Hate Relationship With My Dentist’s Recall Cards
My dentist uses subtle but effective tactics to remind me
that I am not being responsible about my dental health. If I miss a dental check-up, I get a reminder
card. I will get a similar card which
tells me exactly how overdue I am if I do not take action the first time. I do not want to be reminded that I am
overdue for my check-up, but at the same time, the knowledge that a simple one
hour appointment can mean the difference between healthy teeth and a root canal
is usually enough to get me back to the dentist. That knowledge will eat away in the back of
my mind, just like the bacteria causing destruction in my mouth. Eventually, I will take action. Sometimes, my action is forced because I
waited so long that I now have an obvious problem. My dentist is patient. Even after my long dental absence, the whole
team welcomed me back and my dentist did not judge me for my negligence. The
three appointments required to fix the damage I caused with my 20 month absence
was punishment enough.
Are you avoiding the dentist? You are already forgiven. Call and schedule your dental appointment today.
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